Me, too, Bonnie. I knew Campbell's tomato soup was beginning to taste
like
ice cream topping, then I read the ingredients, and there it was -- corn
syrup! No wonder the country is getting so fat; sugar does that to you.
I
buy tomato soup at the health food store now (I think the brand is Nature
Valley or something like that). You are so right; that poison is in just
about everything short of furniture polish.
zem
----- Original Message -----
From: "Bonnie Holmes" <holmesbm@usit.net>
To: <gardenchat@hort.net>
Sent: Wednesday, December 15, 2004 3:24 PM
Subject: Re: [CHAT] now yucky veggies! and very OT

Or, a little okra in a lot of tomato is good. Also, I put a few in
chicken
soup or minestrone.
I like to roast veggies, too. Very good and easy.
We like baby brussel sprouts steamed until just tender and then with a
sauce. I like a simple white sauce that you can make with little
calories.
Some of the creamy salad dressings, like poppy seed, works very well on
them. Just drain out the moisture and add the dressing until warm.

Except for tomatoes and beans, like white and kidney, I don't use canned
veggies because they have such little nutrient and are high in salt and
sugar. I am amazed at how much corn syrup is added to prepared and
canned
foods.

I was going to suggest fried okra, too. Nothing better. If you roll
it in seasoned corn-meal and drop it on a very hot skillet that is
just lightly coated with olive oil, it doesn't even come out bad for
you.
Your brussels sprouts sound yummy, Zem. I have just about given
up heavy cream for health reasons, but it a bit of it really does make
many things come out better.
What I do most often these days - at least when the weather is
reasonably cool - is roasted vegetables. If it's just for us, I mix them
all together, but for a party I keep each kind separate and place
them around a very large Nambe platter, which makes an attractive
presentation. I start with a bit of olive oil and kosher salt in a very
hot oven. While the pan heats I cut up the first round - onions and
carrots. Then as I cut each different vegetable into thin slices,
I add them to the mix - or use two pans if I'm keeping them separate.
The combination varies with what is in the refrigerator, but usually
five or six kinds. I try for a mix with different colors and textures.
Red bell peppers, green squash, pod peas, mushrooms, turnips,
sweet potatoes are all good but I frequently try something new.
I usually add a few drops of sesame oil and a sprinkle of dried
herbs - tarragon or parsley is good. But of course canned or
frozen vegetables would not work - the texture would be all
wrong. This may sound like a lot of work, but it's not. If the oven
is very hot it only takes about 20 minutes from start to finish.
I'm glad to hear that someone else does eat vegetables. I was
beginning to feel peculiar about it.
Auralie

In a message dated 12/15/2004 11:05:54 AM Eastern Standard Time,
zsanders@midsouth.rr.com writes:
I love vegetables, too. Probably because I grew up eating only ones

grown

in the garden. In winter we had what my mother had frozen or canned at

the

end of the growing season. Marge, you should try fried okra -- it's the
best. There is no vegetable I don't really enjoy. I made Brussels